Petersen, D.
1 course · 58 reviews
All Reviews
Great professor. Is always in a good mood and leads the discussions well. All materials were available on Canvas. Attendance did not matter whatsoever, the amount of extra credit she gives means you can skip all lectures and still earn a high A. Exams are all take home quizzes and are open book/notes. Very quick to respond to emails too.
10/1/2024
2 or less hrs/week
One of the easiest classes I had in college. Dottie is the goat, maybe not the best lecturer, but very fun.
5/30/2024
2 or less hrs/week
so boring and didn't learn a single thing. but easy
5/18/2024
2 or less hrs/week
This is generally a boring class, but it is extremely easy with Dottie and she makes it as good as possible - still can be boring. All tests were take home and the final was a project
5/18/2024
She is the best! So nice and so understanding. Very reasonable assignments and quizzes + group quizzes weren't too bad. She gave us tons of time to do the final project and split it up into manageable deliverables. Only complaint would be that the canvas was hard to navigate. Usually finding the homework was harder than actually doing it.
4/22/2024
She was very on top of things and had lecture recordings and slides all posted on canvas, which was very nice. She also was very funny and laid back during lectures.
1/18/2024
Econ isn't my thing, but the class was super easy and professor petersen was really funny and definitely cared about her students.
1/17/2024
Would highly recommend macro with Dottie, especially coming from someone that hasn't taken an econ class before. There are multiple opportunities for extra credit, and as long as you follow the general place of the class, its pretty easy. She is also super funny and makes lectures enjoyable.
1/10/2024
If ur taking macro take it with dottie, shes the best. she made lectures v engaging and is very accessible outside the classroom too.
1/8/2024
Make sure to have a good group for team quizzes and final project. Super easy class otherwise, would highly recommend even if you're not the most interested in economics.
12/27/2023
Skip the lectures, she says "no one gets an A without reading the textbook" but thats BS. Just learn from her slides and by googling stuff. The quizzes in 1021 carry your grade so dont throw that. You need a good group for the team quizzes and project. She gives loads of extra credit
12/19/2023
Dottie is very passionate about economics and caring about her students. The individual quizzes are open note and untimed and the homework is graded on completion(and you don't even have to do all of it). As long as you end up with a good team for quizzes and the final project, you will do well in this class.
12/7/2023
Very kind and caring professor. Lectures can be dry though and she tends to go on tangents about things that are pretty self-explanatory. Weekly homework assignments graded on completion. Individual and team quizzes all online. No final, just a big project/presentation on investing in other countries. Lots of opportunities for extra credit.
12/5/2023
dottie is the GOAT. nice grading, fun lectures. you also learn alot. totally reccomend
10/16/2023
Dottie is an incredible professor. This is my go-to class when recommending econ to non-econ people. Take it, you'll like it.
4/11/2023
Can be very wordy in her lectures, but her excitement makes them manageable. She's lovable, while boring at times. Very short HW assignments that are only graded for completion. Don't need textbook. All you need are the slides from class which she posts. Find a good group of 4 for team quizzes. Final project is a non-issue if work is split up.
1/6/2023
Very easy class and worth taking. Likable professor. EVERY assignment in this class is online and very do-able. You only need 60% of poll's answered for full attendance. The lecture's are OK but nothing spectacular. The final project isn't that bad even if only a few of the group of 8 are responsible.
1/3/2023
A very kind professor who cares about her students despite teaching in a large lecture hall setting. Content can become tricky at times but if you try you'll generally receive a good grade. Lectures can seem long but you can tell that Dottie is passionate about what she does.
12/23/2022
Such a straightforward class, lectures could be more energetic but it's straight to the point. Grading system is well explained and getting an A is doable you just have to at least be a bit familiar with the content. My chillest class this semester.
12/15/2022
Prof. Petersen is a very energetic woman and does her best to keep the class engaged with kind of boring content. However, she isn't very good at explaining the content thoroughly, things jump around a lot and seemed disorganized. I was very confused most of the time even after getting help.
12/13/2022
Professor Petersen is super laid back. She definitely likes to joke around, but her lectures can be boring at times. Intro Macro is one of the easiest courses around.
10/20/2022
Pretty chill teacher though the lectures are ultimately vestigial. She's a bit ditsy/bumbly but she's very warm and easy to talk to. Certainly a better choice than some of the other options for intro macro.
1/25/2022
The quizzes (especially the group quizzes) are really difficult, but if you read the lectures, you are in a good position. It honestly is not a difficult class. Dottie is disorganized, but she is always willing to help, change her grading, or give advice. It is easy to pass if you try a little.
1/20/2022
MacroEcon is an intro class. As such, it is a large lecture. There are times when it can be dry, but it is still a good and interesting class to take. The grade is spread out across a bunch of things, so there is a decent opportunity to get a good great. Dottie is super kind and great to talk to outside of class, so I recommend office hours.
1/19/2022
I enjoyed Professor Petersen's macroeconomics course. While she throws a lot of information at you in both lectures and Canvas, really you just need to know the most important concepts for the quizzes/homework. The group quizzes and country project were slightly annoying to work on, but if you stay on top of deadline it should be a piece of cake.
1/6/2022
I'm very surprised by these ratings. I wen't to class maybe four times, read her slides, and did fine on the quizzes. Super chill teacher. Class was vibes. Stop complaining freshmen and wait till you get to actually difficult classes. Then you will gain an appreciation for this course.
12/28/2021
All notes come from lecture slides, but 20/50 minutes are spent not covering content. Watched every lecture video afterward so I could fast-forward, cutting down the time by nearly half. Prof is funny and personable, but it's a big lecture, so no real personal relationship. Lecture slides are thorough and helpful. Textbook reading not necessary.
12/23/2021
Pretty standard lecture-style class. Quite a bit of group work, which can be pretty stressful to coordinate if unlucky. The other work isn't overwhelming. Her Canvas page can be a bit overwhelming so don't try too hard to take it all in. Just find what you need when you need it. Canvas seems to be a recent transition itself, not necessarily liked.
12/17/2021
Very unorganized. She is a good person but the teaching is just bad to be honest.
12/13/2021
You can tell Prof. Petersen really loves econ. She is so passionate about getting you excited about it, and it doesn't matter if you've never had econ before. The class is very group-project/test-based, so try to make good friends early on in the class so you aren't suck with a bad group, as it is a big part of your grade.
12/13/2021
Most boring class ever. Petersen is incapable of using technology. That combined with extremely boring lectures, no synchronous learning, and super easy MC tests made it an easy decision to never do the readings or watch the lectures. Sure I passed, but I didn't learn a single thing and I hated every minute of it.
1/10/2021
Dottie might be nice, but her online Intro to Macro class was horribly organized and chaotic. Good luck finding resources on Canvas, that thing was like a labyrinth to navigate. She relies too much on group projects and papers, which is silly for an intro class imo. The textbook was gr8 tho. Maybe I'd take her again in person, but def not online.
1/9/2021
Professor Petersen is great. She does things in class to grab the students' attention and make the class enjoyable. Likewise, she is always available to chat and help out. I had my first econ class with her, and now I'm considering being an econ major. The course is a little slow, but after all, it is introductory. I think she's an exemplary prof.
5/2/2020
I took Intro to Macro with Dr. Petersen, and I would highly recommend anyone do the same! It's really helpful to go to her office hours (even if you don't have any specific questions). Her lectures are funny, and she is a very nice person. The grading is annoying (no initial grade cutoffs, so you have to compete against the rest of the class).
1/17/2020
I took her intro to macro class and got pretty much what I expected from an intro lecture class. Her lectures get boring and rambly but she tries to keep it interesting with jokes (and sometimes it's just a boring topic). Despite this, she's very caring and will definitely help you in office hours. There's also a ton of extra credit!
1/9/2020
wierdest and craziest person ever. Mood swings x100. will not grade for years. helpless when you go for extra help. does not teach. can pass without ever showing face with basic econ knowledge.
11/13/2019
Not really sure why Dottie has such low ratings on here, because she's a great prof. Yes, she can be a bit disorganized in lecture, but overall I found her class to be really interesting and not too difficult. She also gives a ton of extra credit, and I would not take any of the other reviews too seriously when deciding to take a class with her.
12/24/2018
If you study, take the practice tests, and go to lectures, you'll be fine.
1/25/2018
I took APMacro prior. That being said, I love Prof Petersen and could follow along, but she moves pretty quickly and expects you to ask questions, use office hours if things aren't making sense. She makes it easy to ask questions in class and really likes when people participate. She's not the most clear in her lectures but engaging and likable.
5/21/2017
Painful. Tried to stick to the syllabus, but gave up, and I couldn't follow along. Class time that should have been helpful but was spent w things we were never tested on, and added confusion. Team quizzes suck; if you have a bad team, individual studying/understanding will feel completely pointless. Not at all what an intro course should be.
12/16/2016
I really didn't like this class. Your grade mostly depends on your group. If you have a good group you should do fine because a third of your grade comes from group work. I am so glad this class is over. Nothing that she taught stuck.
12/8/2016
While I don't think Dottie's lectures were the most useful, I don't think her Macro class is as bad as advertised. She is very transparent with her grading scale/criteria and generously curved the final exam. The group project was annoying at some points but if you follow the explicit instructions she gives it can be a worthwhile grade booster.
5/10/2016
Microeconomics with Dottie is one of the best classes you can take and can be used for either ArtSci or BSchool Econ requirements. Each semester Dottie usually allows her students to have some say in how grades will be calculated. Do yourself a favor and put emphasis on group work and participation, rather than tests.
4/27/2016
I got a B but she is the most incompetent teacher I have ever had.
9/19/2015
mid terms are disasters. Cover a really huge chunk of information outside the textbook. Insane number of jargons, even in midterms.
11/11/2014
Quizzes are more like prior knowledge assessments - they are often based on materials that will be covered in the future. Tests are harder than or even irrelevant to her lecturespractice questions.
11/10/2014
Quizzes are more like prior knowledge assessments - they are always based on materials that will be covered in the future. Tests are often harder than what we've learned in class
11/10/2014
Quiz&Midterms will cover lots of materials that were never formally covered in lectures.
11/5/2014
Good professor, but I wasn't really fond of the constant group work
11/4/2014
Don't take her class!!! I feel that she couldn't explain questions clearly. Just reading the textbook is more useful than her lectures. Easy online homework and useless group work during class, which makes the exams look much harder. I regret taking her class. Should have waited till next semester and take it by other professors.
10/23/2014
The group work is tedious and unhelpful. You can simply study by reading the textbook and get better understanding of the course than attending the lecture. Her class is not recommended.
10/7/2014
You can tell she loves what she teaches, and she teaches material with clarity and good pace. She also respects the students.
4/10/2014
Basically no one attends her class......what she teaches in class is completely different from what we are tested..to be honest, don't choose her classsss!!!! i should've dropped it this semester.....
1/1/2012